A research fund named for liberal historian Howard Zinn has been created at the Indiana school whose president denounced Zinn's work as "a truly execrable, anti-factual piece of disinformation" while serving as governor.

Purdue University President Mitch Daniels drew fire when The Associated Press reported that he had sought assurance while governor that Zinn's "A People's History of the United States" wasn't being used in Indiana K-12 classrooms or counted toward continuing education credit for teachers.

Purdue history professor Susan Curtis says more than $8,000 has been pledged to the Howard Zinn Memorial Research Award. The Journal & Courier reports the fund will support American studies graduate students whose research focuses on dissenters and marginalized groups.

More than 100 people gathered at Purdue Tuesday to celebrate Zinn's work.

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